1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a nanosized electrical probe for measuring an electrical signal of charged colloidal particles, and a device for measuring an electrical signal of charged colloidal particles using the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, ion channels function not only to determine the voltage of a cell membrane affecting the excitability of cells, but also to control the concentration of intracellular Ca2+ participating in the bio-signal transmission in almost all the cells. Thus, ion channels are importantly regarded as means for finding how the cells operate as bio-signal sensors and reactors. In this regard, a patch-clamp technique, which was invented by Neher & Sakmann in 1981, is employed to record the operation of a single ion channel by applying mechanical and physicochemical stimuli to the cell while varying intracellular or extracellular environments according to the intention of an experimenter, and is thus receiving attention as a core of the field of cell biology (Hamil et al., 1981; Neher et al., 1992).
However, such a patch-clamp technique for recording ion channel currents in cell levels is disadvantageous because it cannot be applied to charged colloidal particles (e.g., mitochondria) having a diameter of about 1 μm, which float in a solution, and thus it is impossible to measure their electrical bio-signals.